The Sunday Slate's Week 1 CFB Recap

The Headline: Michigan needed a gifted second on the clock and a Hail Mary just to survive Western Michigan, while Miami’s QB1 and Ohio State’s Sayin-Smith connection served notice that the Heisman race — and the Sept. 12 Ohio State-Texas showdown — are both very real.

📈 Stock Rising

Darian Mensah, QB, Miami (Jr.)

The Performance: 27-of-30, 401 yards, 5 TDs in a rout of Stanford — PFF’s National Player of the Week, with a 9.7% big-time throw rate and zero turnover-worthy plays.
NFL Translation: Efficiency and explosiveness is the rare combo that gets QBs off the board early.

Malachi Toney, WR, Miami (Soph.)

The Performance: 12-for-12 on catchable targets, 233 yards, 3 TDs, 4 forced missed tackles, 7.5 yards per route run — PFF’s Offensive Player of the Week.
NFL Translation: That missed-tackle number is the headline. YAC ability like that projects directly to a Sunday role.

Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State (Jr.)

The Performance: 21-of-25, 320 yards, 3 TDs, pulled in the second half of a 56-3 win. Earned a 93.1 PFF passing grade from a clean pocket — best in the country in Week 1.
NFL Translation: Two of those touchdowns went to Jeremiah Smith on a combined 151 yards. A QB who already has that kind of chemistry with a true blue-chip receiver is ahead of schedule.

Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State (Jr.)

The Performance: 8 catches, 151 yards, 2 TDs, including a 48-yard score. Earned PFF’s Big Ten “Flex” honors for Week 1.
NFL Translation: Smith doesn’t need volume to produce — he’s a big-play, contested-catch weapon who wins vertically. He’s a Day 1, Top-10 archetype.

Deuce Alexander, WR, Ole Miss (Sr.)

The Performance: 5 catches, 159 yards, 2 TDs (two 62-yard scores) in a 41-38 win over Louisville — and also posted the highest max recorded speed of any Week 1 player nationally.
NFL Translation: Ole Miss sent a few pass-catchers to the NFL, so Deuce stepping up could be something we see regularly, especially as his max speed appears to be NFL-ready.

Hollywood Smothers, RB, Texas (RS Jr.)

The Performance: 10 carries for 70 yards, plus 3 catches for 28 yards and a receiving TD in Texas’s 59-7 win over Texas State, headlined by a 45-yard run on his very first touch.
NFL Translation: Many assumed Raleek Brown would be THE guy in the backfield. The Texas RB Factory looks like they might have two more pro backs, and Hollywood has the early edge for most production.

💎 Non-Power-4 Gem

Jackson Forrest, LB, Old Dominion

The Performance: 94.1 PFF grade — three sacks, a quarterback hurry, and a forced fumble on just seven pass-rush snaps against Norfolk State. PFF’s National Defensive Player of the Week.
NFL Translation: A Sun Belt linebacker outproducing every defender in the country in Week 1 is exactly the kind of tape scouts flag for a deeper look. Efficiency on limited snaps (3 sacks on 7 rushes) is a trait, not a fluke stat line.

📉 Pump the Brakes

Bryce Underwood, QB, Michigan (Soph.)

The Concern: Went 12-of-22 for 170 yards, one TD, a rushing TD, and one pick. ESPN Analytics had the Broncos at a 99.9% win probability with 26 seconds left before Underwood’s game-winning (and controversial) Hail Mary bailed the offense out.
The Verdict: One throw shouldn’t erase the previous 59 minutes of game for Underwood. The pocket rhythm and accuracy just weren’t there, and the entire UM team is worth tracking against Oklahoma next week.

Drew Mestemaker, QB, Oklahoma State (Soph.)

The Concern: Went 29-of-49 for 241 yards, one TD, and two picks. We should be patient because he is leading a transfer-heavy team, but the hype this offseason did not reflect this performance.
The Verdict: 10 points against Tulsa is far worse than what was considered a terrible Week 1 last year out of Arch Manning vs. Ohio State. We hope to see improvement as Mestemaker gets settled.

DJ Lagway, QB, Baylor (Jr.)

The Concern: 27-of-54 for 333 yards, 2 TDs, and an interception, then got the potential game-tying two-point try stuffed at the goal line in a 17-16 loss to Auburn. This is the Dion Waiters volume-shooter meme in CFB form.
The Verdict: The arm talent flashed — 333 yards on a losing team says as much — but a 50% completion rate and a stopped short-yardage sneak on the biggest snap of the game are exactly the inconsistency concerns that follow him into the fall.

Tre Wisner, RB, Florida State (Sr.)

The Concern: Florida State RBs logged 32 touches in their Week 1 thriller against SMU. Unfortunately none of those touches were made by the Texas transfer, as he also wasn’t able to log a single snap. Very concerning for a $500k+ NIL player.
The Verdict: As we saw with Jaydn Ott last season, highly-touted prospects can only be so appealing without playing time and impact to match that pedigree. Is Wisner can’t find the field, NFL teams won’t be able to confidently select him.

🎬 Film Room: Manning Under Siege

Arch Manning went 3-for-3 for 57 yards and a touchdown on his four pressured dropbacks against Texas State. He held the ball for an average of 4.43 seconds and generated 0.99 EPA per play in those reps, according to PFF who graded him with an 81.6 grade on plays where the pocket broke down. That’s a series of metrics we want to highlight heading into Week 2 as Texas prepares for Ohio State.

Much of Manning’s 2025 tape was defined by turnover-worthy plays. Staying clean and aggressive when things get muddy is the swing skill between “talented” and “franchise” quarterback evaluations. It’s the exact test Ohio State’s defense will bring to Arch in Austin this weekend. Will he make a #1 Overall statement against another CFP team?

🔭 Next Week’s Scouting Circle

No. 1 Ohio State at No. 4 Texas (Sept. 12): Sayin vs. Manning, round two — the first real pressure test for both after they combined for 625 yards and 7 TDs against overmatched Week 1 opponents. Huge game for NFL Draft fans.
No. 11 Oklahoma at Michigan: Can Underwood and the Wolverines’ offense find rhythm against a stiffer Sooners front after needing a miracle just to beat Western Michigan?
Alabama at Kentucky: Keelon Russell’s second career start after a dual-threat debut (249 passing yards, 86 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD) against East Carolina. Would be great to see a better all-around performance out of Ryan Coleman-Williams.